The Court of Outcasts

by Allison Rose

  Nola sank down to sitting in the landscaping, horror-struck.

  It’s as if I never existed.

  “My mistake,” she heard Fable say as if from far away. The door clicked shut, and then Fable crouched next to her.

  “Won’t they be confused when they see my room?” she asked numbly, focusing on a pine branch in front of her. She was no longer afraid of this faerie. He got what he wanted from her.

  “They will remember you.”

  Nola shifted her gaze to his as hope rose in her chest.

  “But as a troubled child who stayed with them once and disappeared.”

  Her hopes fell, crashing below and dying. It is done. And I didn’t have a say in any of it.

  “My friends will remember,” she said without thinking. No! Why did I say that? “But they will soon move on, I bet,” she hastily amended.

  “I am sure you will find a way to silence them,” Fable said with an unconcerned air.

  Nola shuddered at his words but was equally relieved. And then anger sparked within her.

  He thinks he can continue to play games with all of us.

  Nola fixed Fable with a look, actually meeting his unnerving gaze without fear.

  He needs me. I have power now. And nothing more to fear from him.

  “I will become this faerie you want me to be, but you will leave Briar and the Court of Outcasts alone. And the other humans of this world. You will leave them all alone.”

  He cocked an eyebrow. “Or?”

  “Or I will refuse to go with whatever plan you have for my future.”

  Fable let out a laugh. “You are a clever one.” He rose to his feet and gave her a small bow. “I shall leave the human world alone, bright one.” Then he left on foot, still in his human form, with an unhurried gait, as if taking in the world one last time before he left.

  Nola watched him reach the cover of a particularly large tree lining the street. There was a flash of light, and then he was gone.

  She closed her eyes and let the tears come.

  Chapter 32

  Kelty magically coaxed a wide leaf to grow larger before gently plucking it from its branch. Then she carefully gathered Sayra’s remains onto the leaf, folding up the sides so the liquid would not spill. Tears brimmed in her eyes for her fallen subject.

  She was so troubled. And I could not help her. I could not save her. And now I may not be able to return her to the ara properly.

  What Sayra’s remains may be used for was unheard of, revolting even. Yet if it was what Nola chose, Kelty would make sure it was done.

  Sayra will be returned to the ground in a way, Kelty told herself. She would be helping Nola reconnect the rest of the court to the ara, to save them. That has to be a good enough cause to justify it.

  Even as she thought it, guilt wracked her mind, and another thought reared its ugly head: You are using her just as Fable did.

  Kelty thought back to the vision she had seen and Sayra’s last words: “I could not save her then. Now I can.”

  She wanted to save her daughter. Fable made her think in some way that she could. And then he lured her to her death, knowing someone would defend Nola against her. In Sayra’s weakened state, she stood no chance.

  Kelty sighed and forced thoughts of Sayra from her mind. Unless they could somehow get answers from Fable, Sayra’s story might forever remain a mystery. Kelty had more pressing things to worry about.

  When Nola had run off, Kelty had wanted to follow, but forced herself to remain behind, to let Nola figure this out on her own, to make her own decision.

  “You will allow Nola to choose her own future,” had been the oath spoken between the brothers.

  Kelty turned toward her home, cradling the leaf and striding forward with purpose.

  Nola does not have much of a choice at all. She thinks she is the only solution to my court’s problems. The blue one needs to explain himself.

  The Court of Outcasts, Briar, and Rowan all stood in the clearing in front of her home tree when she arrived. A hush fell as she silently walked past them all to open the door of her home, wanting to secure Sayra’s remains before any of them accosted her.

  She tucked the makeshift leaf pouch into a corner, making sure the faerie remains did not spill. Then she paused, sitting back on her heels, willing the tension to leave her body. She reached up to touch one of the lumin flowers still growing alongside the walls of her tree. The calm energy she felt from it invigorated her somewhat.

  At least Fable is gone. And Nola is back home.

  Kelty rose and turned to push open the door and face the court beyond.

  Briar stood closest to her tree off to the side, body angled slightly behind Rowan. The other outcasts stood opposite them. All turned to face Kelty and fell silent when she reappeared.

  Focus on moving forward, but don’t ignore the past wrongs.

  “You will each be permitted to speak,” Kelty addressed them. “Though I would urge you to remember that we have all been wronged by Fable. We cannot let his actions drive us apart.”

  Anthem looked about ready to burst, and so Kelty waved an encouraging hand at him.

  “Fable did not kill Sayra,” he bit out, glaring across the clearing at Briar.

  Murder was not common in Faerie, especially since the events of the Silver Dusk took so many lives from both courts. At the Night Court, the punishment was isolation deep within the ground, so that the wrongdoer may remember the ara and that they were all connected, all a part of Faerie. Kelty suspected many of the Day Court’s violators were sent to the human world.

  She had no idea what punishment she wanted to establish in her small, young court.

  “He will face punishment,” Kelty assured Anthem.

  “Sayra’s remains?” Dane’s deep voice cut through the clearing. His expression was unreadable, but Kelty winced internally at the accusation in his tone.

  “It is yet to be decided if they will be returned to the ara or used to turn Nola into a faerie as Fable so wishes.”

  Silence followed her statement, and it was so much worse than the angry clamor she imagined.

  “Nola is my good friend and chosen sister. She had the ability to see through my concealment when I met her. It was Fable’s influence on a group of young humans that led them to create the magic that made her that way. She is caught up in this just as much as all of us. And she will choose her own fate.” Kelty snuck a glance at Briar, who had a dark look on his face. “I would not force anyone to choose this, but if she wishes to become a faerie, she will have the power to reconnect you to the ara.”

  “And if this human chooses not to?” Anthem gave voice to the question that hung in the air.

  “I will find another way to save you,” Kelty promised in a determined voice. She saw Rowan tense out of the corner of her eye, but she forged on anyway. “I take responsibility for this.”

  “It is not your fault,” Lark said gently. Kelty turned and gave her a surprised look. “Whoever this Fable is, he is powerful and evil. And you are kind.”

  Kelty blinked, caught off guard by the compliment. “Many thanks.” She awkwardly inclined her head at her adviser.

  “Where is Nola?” Rowan asked.

  “She needed time to think,” Kelty answered. “As do I. You”—she pointed at Briar—“will remain here. The rest of you, I will give you an answer in the morning.”

  Lark and Dane nodded hesitantly. Anthem turned on his heel and stormed off in a rush of wind. After watching the dramatics, Lark and Dane turned and melted back in the wood as well.

  Kelty turned to Briar and Rowan, but she waited until the others were out of earshot before speaking.

  “You killed one of my court.” Kelty pinned Briar with her gaze. “For Nola.”

  He nodded. “Yes.”

  “What did Fable mean when he said you both got what you wanted?”

  Briar winced. “I did not discuss anything with him, or swear any oaths. He may have gleaned the desire fr
om my mind.”

  “For Nola to be faerie?” Rowan cut in.

  Briar nodded. “I would never have forced her.”

  “What was the purpose of the oath outside the jail then?” Kelty asked.

  Briar shook his head. “I do not know. I would not stand in the way of anything she wished to do.”

  Kelty suddenly felt tired to her core. Something else that doesn’t make sense. Fable has played us all. She had a sinking feeling he may continue to do so.

  “You will have to be punished,” she informed Briar.

  “Any punishment is worth saving her.”

  Kelty studied him. This faerie had been her potential once. He tricked her into being banished from Faerie in order to throw her in the path of the one who caused this mess. He was the enemy, even if it was the one they wanted, that never went so far as to destroy them. Looking at him now, she felt pity for him. Being so close to a faerie like Fable had to be torture. And through it all, he had tried to save Nola. He had killed for her.

  Maybe this is what Nola sees in him.

  But that still does not mean he is good enough for her.

  “You will remain here until I have thought of a punishment.” Kelty sent her power into the ground and up into the bushes behind Briar. The branches grew and reached out to ensnare him in a tight grip around his arms, torso, and feet. “And you will not speak to Nola,” she added.

  The poor girl already has enough on her mind.

  Briar nodded silently. Kelty gave Rowan a look as she went to step into her home tree again. He followed her inside, the heat from his body already a comfort.

  As the door closed and secured, Kelty sagged, the rush of everything that had happened threatening to overwhelm her. She turned and flung herself into Rowan’s arms, hardly able to form a thought, much less speak.

  He held her close in silence.

  Chapter 33

  Nola sat in the landscaping until the growing darkness and the stiffness in her limbs prompted her to rise.

  She peeked into the house again. Her mother and father were standing near the front closet, gathering their coats. Nola ducked down again as they exited the house and got into the car. After they drove away, she emerged from the bushes and let herself in the house.

  I have to say goodbye somehow. They may not remember it, but they were my parents.

  She climbed the stairs to her room and gave a small smile at the plants that greeted her there. With a sigh, she sat at her desk and took out a pen and paper. It took a few tries, but she finally managed to put her feelings down on paper and to give a plausible explanation.

  “A troubled child that stayed with them once and disappeared,” Fable had said they would remember.

  I can still give them some peace of mind about this troubled child.

  Nola wrote:

  I know this will be hard to understand, but I know this is the right thing to do. I need to go away for your sake and mine. Please do not look for me. I will be safe, I promise, and surrounded by friends. Know that I appreciate you both and wish only the best things for you.

  Let me go and be at peace.

  Nola hesitated before signing her name, but then did it anyway. At least then they will remember a part of me.

  Tears were falling onto the paper as Nola folded it. Then she rose from her desk chair and looked around her room. Besides the amount of plants, it looked so ordinary. And a little foreign, like she didn’t belong in it anymore.

  She bent back over the desk and picked up her pen, adding a line to her note:

  P.S. Please take care of my plants.

  Suddenly inspired, Nola sat back down and penned two more notes for Lauren and Tris, then left her parents’ note on the kitchen counter, and quietly slipped out the back door, heading down the street.

  She walked the few blocks to Tris’s home. She doubted she would be allowed near Lauren, but figured Tris would be able to give her the message.

  When Nola arrived, she thought about going inside, saying goodbye in person, but her legs felt as if they were made of lead. After a few minutes of trying to convince herself she could do it, she shoved both notes into the mailbox and ran.

  I will make sure Lauren and the others from Bliss are okay as soon as I…change, she vowed silently. It’s not like I will be going anywhere. And I will still be able to talk to Cameron, Jeanine, and Adam.

  Tears fell from her eyes, but she warmed at the thought that she wasn’t losing everything.

  Kelty met Nola part of the way into the park.

  She took one look at Nola and asked, “You are sure?”

  Nola nodded resolutely.

  “You have said goodbye?” Kelty asked awkwardly.

  “Yes,” Nola assured her. “I am ready.”

  “Come, then.” Kelty turned. “And don’t speak to Briar.”

  Nola followed wordlessly and saw what Kelty meant when they entered the clearing. Briar locked gazes with her, and she saw a swirl of emotions cross his face: guilt, fondness, hope, and something more intense, like anger.

  Kelty impatiently waved her forward, and Nola realized she had stopped walking. With one last look at Briar that hopefully conveyed that she was grateful for everything he had done, Nola walked forward and ducked to enter Kelty’s home tree.

  “Lay on the ground,” Kelty instructed. “I do not know what will happen, so you need to be as close to the ara in the soil as possible. Also, remove your clothes.” Nola did her best to oblige in the small space, only blushing a little at her nakedness.

  Roots crawled up from the soil to wrap around Nola’s legs. Kelty offered her the leaf of Sayra’s remains.

  I can do this. I will wake up as what I was always meant to be. Magical. I will be whole.

  Nola took a deep breath, and swallowed.

  A burning spread through her, but it wasn’t altogether unpleasant. Although she itched to be out of her skin, like what was inside her was too much for her body to contain.

  Kelty nudged her gently to the ground, and the roots covered Nola completely.

  The transformation was fast and disorienting, like going to sleep and waking up in the morning, but waking up was startling.

  “Nola,” she heard her name as the roots released her and returned into the soil. The voice was familiar, yet held a smoother tone. Nola turned her gaze to Kelty above her. Looking at her was like being in Faerie. Her color seemed brighter, and she felt less alien to Nola. Kelty’s voice had always had a little rasp to it that Nola noticed as a human that seemed to be gone now. The air itself smelled sweeter, like the faint scent of flowers.

  The energy from beneath the soil called to Nola, stronger than before. A smile stretched across her face at the feeling.

  That was when she noticed the uncomfortable feeling beneath her back.

  “Slow,” Kelty cautioned in a soft voice as Nola sat up.

  She squirmed to peek behind her shoulders. The wings that now sprouted from her back brought tears of joy to her eyes.

  “It will take a while to learn how to use them,” Kelty said with a smile as she watched Nola ogle them.

  Nola noticed the green of her skin next. It was the most gorgeous shade she had ever seen, like a new leaf, somewhere between light and dark. Her body itself had shrunk and become more petite. Nola flexed her fingers and toes. Besides the disorientation, she felt great. She looked up at Kelty and gave her a brilliant smile.

  “I’m a faerie,” Nola said, and then gasped at the musical tone of her voice. It hadn’t changed much, but it was certainly more pleasing to the ear.

  Kelty laughed at her. “Yes. I am guessing you are pleased with that?”

  Nola nodded, though her attention drifted to looking at her wings again.

  Kelty helped Nola dress in faerie style, showing her how to wrap a cloth in a deep shade of brown she had woven herself so that everything important was covered and allowed Nola to move freely at the same time.

  When they were finished, Kelty helped Nola to stand
. She wobbled so much that she collapsed back onto the ground.

  “Rest for now,” Kelty told her gently.

  Maybe not as easy as I thought it would be, Nola thought. But it has to get easier from here. And the wings are awesome.

  And there was one faerie she particularly wanted to share this awesomeness with.

  “I want to see Briar,” Nola told Kelty.

  Kelty’s eyebrows rose disapprovingly, but all she asked was, “Are you sure?”

  When Nola nodded, Kelty exited without a word.

  Nola’s heart almost stopped when Briar ducked into the tree. She looked at him with new eyes, yet the same feeling that they were connected somehow lingered. The urge she usually felt to draw him surfaced, but she doubted she could put to paper the light she saw at his core. It was a kaleidoscope of colors, swirling into a ball, and seeming to call out to her, like he was hers.

  So this is what being a potential feels like.

  Nola remembered herself then and reluctantly pulled her attention up to his face. He met her gaze almost hesitantly.

  “Your eyes,” he said in pleasant surprise as he crouched next to her.

  “My eyes?” Nola echoed. Her hand went to her face. “Is there something wrong with them?”

  “No.” He rushed to assure her. “They are the same. That’s all.”

  “And that’s a good thing?” she asked hesitantly.

  He smiled, more of a full smile than she had ever seen on him. “I have always found them stunning.”

  A warmth started in Nola’s chest. But there was still one question she had to ask.

  “What did Fable mean when he said you would both get what you desired?”

  He ran a hand over his face. “That proposition I asked of you?”

  Nola nodded.

  Briar took a breath. “This is what I would’ve asked of you. But not like this,” he rushed to add.

  Nola’s heart swelled. “You wanted to be with me even then?” She wasn’t even mad that he wanted to change her. It made sense this way. Everything made sense.

  His gaze turned molten as he nodded. Nola smiled and dove forward into his arms.